The Strife is O'er, the Battle Done, ELW 135
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!
1 The strife is o'er, the battle done; now is the victor's triumph won! Now be the song of praise begun.
Alleluia!
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!
2 The pow'rs of death have done their worst; Jesus their legions has dispersed.
Let shouts of holy joy outburst.
Alleluia!
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!
3 The three sad days have quickly sped, Christ rises glorious from the dead.
All glory to our risen head!
Alleluia!
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!
4 Christ closed the yawning gates of hell; the bars from heav'n's high portals fell.
Let hymns of praise his triumph tell.
Alleluia!
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!
5 Lord, by the stripes which wounded you, from death's sting free your servants too, that we may live and sing to you.
Alleluia!
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!
Devotion
Despite the pain and sorrow that we sometimes experience in life, we are brought into the glory of Christ through his resurrection. It is through this victory that we can endure the times when life brings us to our knees, sobbing from heartache. Here on Earth, we still encounter experiences that make us hurt. But we also know that Jesus has gone before us in all these painful areas of life. Jesus conquers all these dark moments and brings us into healing with him. We, too are resurrected; we, too will say that death can no longer hold us down. We, too know that our time here is like a blink of an eye and the time that we enter with Jesus is for eternity.
Prayer
Dear Lord, thank you for ending the pain and suffering of this life. Give us the strength to know that because of the sacrifice of your son, Jesus, the pain we endure in this life is temporary. We rejoice at the victory over death that Christ has won. Amen.